Bon Appetit
by 02AngelBaby75
Summary: Little one-shots about Hannibal eating normal people food. Also loosely based on my therapy sessions.
1. Grilled Cheese

"There is no love sincerer than the love of food."  
_ ~George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman_

* * *

Miss Flossie Rigby was a young woman with a face-full of freckles, big brown eyes, an incredibly sweet smile, and clinical depression. She was one of Dr. Lecter's patients, and had been for the past five months. Usually people didn't see the need to keep coming for such a long period of time, but not Flossie. Every Thursday at nine in the morning, she would be there, precisely on time.

Things had recently begun looking up for Flossie; she was definitely beginning to get better. She didn't cry as much and she slept better, but she still got sort of sad when she saw squished snails on the sidewalk. Her, "episodes," as she called them, were occurring less and less. But when they happened, they _happened_. To cope with this, she had taken up cooking and, occasionally, baking.

This particular Thursday, a day after an episode, Flossie brought Dr. Lecter her personal favorite thing of all time-grilled cheese.

At first glance, there wasn't anything spectacular that stood out about the sandwich. In fact, thought Hannibal, it was a little burnt on one side. He had to say, he was throughly unimpressed with Miss Rigby's attempt.

She had brought him things before, mainly marshmallows because that was the only snack she would eat. When she couldn't finish an entire bag, she would bring the rest to him. It was an extremely strange habit that was slowly but surely turning into a compulsion. Dr. Lecter knew she exhibited signs of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder; Flossie's steps were deliberate, calculated, as if she were counting them in her head. Apparently there was nothing going on with her in that sense, but she lied very frequently to him. Well, perhaps not lying, but she would deny things forever and keep everything inside until they became a major problem. Like how she dismissed her depression as a constant string of bad days.

So Hannibal was quite surprised to see grilled cheese, placed on a small white plate, sitting on his desk instead of the usual unpleasant bowl of marshmallows, which he threw out as fast as humanly possible. As mentioned, it didn't look like much, and Dr. Lecter was prepared to do the same with the sandwich as the other small, fluffy monstrosities.

But then a thought struck him: never in his life had he tried a grilled cheese sandwich.

Grilled cheese! The epitome of childhood innocence. Something no one should ever have to go through life without. Perhaps this was the reason. He did not really have much of a childhood, and what he remembered from those days he preferred not to dwell on.

Dr. Lecter stared at the sandwich for what felt like a long time, deep in thought. Miss Rigby had left some time ago, after a longer than usual session. She explained to him she made grilled cheese because it brought back good memories of when her older brother would make it for her. Being the extremely affectionate and thoughtful person she was, Flossie was overjoyed to share her creation worth Dr. Lecter.

All of a sudden the sandwich looked awfully tempting. It was _cheese_, and cheese was pretty good. And so were sandwiches, if one was in the mood. Practically anything grilled was bound to be yummy. It was beginning to not sound so bad.

Tentatively, Hannibal reached for the grilled cheese, holding it up to his face in only slightly trembling hands. Nervously, he sniffed it, for that's just what Hannibal did with everything. It appeared safe, and he doubted Flossie would attempt to poison him or something of the like, nor anyone else.

Dr. Lecter closed his eyes, sucked in a breath, and went for it, taking a rather large bite from the grilled cheese sandwich. It was still warm, not completely toasty like when Flossie made it, but warm, nonetheless, enough that the cheese was still oh so _gooey_.

Time seemed to slow down then. Next thing Hannibal knew, he had scarfed down the whole thing and was currently picking at the crumbs on the plate.

He took a shocked step back, horrified at the deed he had just committed. He glared down at his hands which he held out in front of him in stunned silence. He, _Dr. Hannibal Lecter_ had just eaten a grilled cheese sandwich and what was worst of all is that he enjoyed it.

Guilt was a wasted emotion. Dr. Lecter knew this, so he did not allow it to consume him. Once he recovered from the shock, he knew he had to move on with life. Things had to be done, despite that...momentary lapse of reason. But Hannibal would never forget that fateful day when he ate his first ever grilled cheese sandwich.


	2. Chocolate Pudding

"When engaged in eating, the brain should be the servant of the stomach."

~_Agatha Christie_

* * *

It was two weeks later when Miss Rigby returned with her apparent favorite desert ever: pudding.

This was not regular pudding, though. This was _chocolate_ pudding, made from scratch and made with love. Flossie had met someone and from what Dr. Lecter understood, things were getting, "pretty serious," between them. She was reluctant to tell the good doctor his name, but she eventually gave in, grinning like a schoolgirl as she blurted out, "Leland!"

Hannibal wondered how someone could know another for such a short amount of time and be so ridiculously obsessed with them. Love on such a level as this was something he didn't predict he would ever fully comprehend. Not that he wanted to.

The doctor suspected Flossie was indeed getting better and she had mentioned a couple of times that she was thinking of ending her sessions with him pretty soon. Hannibal was unsure about this, however Flossie seems to be fluctuating between very different moods. This Thursday everything was fine and dandy and she had the love of her life, Leland, but not two weeks ago Miss Rigby didn't know how she could go on anymore. The lady was quite unstable and needed even a little stability in her life, which he believed her weekly morning appointments could provide. He told her this as gently as possible, and as anticipated, Flossie agreed. She would keep coming, which this meant she would keep bringing Hannibal food.

Chocolate was among Dr. Lecter's guilty pleasures. It was the one thing he would never, ever get sick of eating. (Besides human organs, _ahem_.) Pudding was a different story, however. He has had it on occasion, though he cannot exactly recall when or why. That's the kind of impression it left on him; pudding was nothing too special.

Hannibal found himself in a bit of a predicament at this point. Was having the epitome of deliciousness, also known as chocolate, worth it if it was in pudding form?

Of course it was.

Much like last time, Hannibal was clearly skeptical upon the first bite. He didn't really bother sniffing at it this time around, for he could smell chocolate miles away and that made him unbelievably happy. Anyway...

It was chocolaty but not overly heavy, indulgent but not too rich. Basically, the pudding was the kind of thing you'd want to eat with the love of your life, Flossie's Leland. He could tell she put a lot of effort into the desert, and he appreciated people who were as ambitious as Florence Rigby.

Though the pudding was far better than Dr. Lecter thought it would be, it left him with a sort of melancholy feeling, something he was unable to properly explain. He had a sneaking suspicion Flossie's happiness was not going to last long.


	3. Potato Soup

"To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art."  
_~François de La Rochefoucauld_

* * *

The third dish Flossie brought Dr. Lecter was one of his personal favorites: potato soup. There was hardly anything he could think of that was more comforting than a nice, warm bowl of soup. And a soup filled with one of the most diverse and long-lasting foods of all time was utterly perfect. It was especially amazing on a rainy day, which just do happened to be this lovely Thursday.

It was the first time Hannibal had thanked Miss Rigby in actual sincerity. He thought this was a good idea also because Flossie was completely heartbroken. Leland had just dumped her but three days ago, and while walking to his office today she had seen at least three snails squished on the sidewalk. She was positively broken.

She made the soup because, similar to Hannibal, eating it made her feel better. She talked a lot about how it would be easier to just go to _Dairy Queen_ or something and grab a few blizzards and have those. It would be easier, but she knew better. Soup fixed everything; it soothed your emotions like not even fast food could. The feeling Hannibal had during their last session was correct after all. He had seen it coming for a while; he knew Flossie could either be too distant or too clingy, most likely the latter. She had probably scared this Leland off with her constant, nervous chattering and her love of cats and Minecraft, which was one aspect of her life neither individual wished to discuss much.

Hannibal felt a genuine twinge of sympathy for Flossie. Over the months he had been her doctor, he had formed a strange kind of bond with her. She was a rare person. Miss Rigby was among the few left who truly had a caring soul, and although he was unable to really relate to that, he did indeed admire it.

"Thank you," Dr. Lecter said politely to her as she collected her diary which she constantly wrote in and her purse which was stuffed with peppermints because she loved peppermints. "It is very kind of you to do this, Flossie."

A sad smile crossed Miss Rigby's lips. Her freckles were much more prominent due to the weather; summer was approaching and the sun shone brighter each day. "You're all I have left," she said in a pathetic little voice. Then she hastily added, "Well not really. I have my mum and Rita, too." Rita was Flossie's cross-eyed Siamese.

"You're never alone," Hannibal told her and he patted the top of her head when Flossie squeezed his shoulder. She was an extremely cuddly person and he suspected she would be hugging him goodbye pretty soon.

Hannibal had a difficult time enjoying the soup. Of course it was among the best he had ever had, which was a little surprising. It was not a simple task to prepare a potato soup that was decent, but Miss Rigby pulled it off, although it was slightly watery. Only slightly, however.

The good doctor thought about how strange of a situation he was in. Never, in all his years of being a psychiatrist, had he met someone who did what Florence Rigby did. It greatly puzzled him. Was she really so desperate for companionship that she should try to bring their relationship to another level, something that was not strictly professional? He didn't believe that to be the case. Perhaps Flossie was just as she appeared to be: a ridiculously thoughtful person with a friendly demeanor and a love for cooking and people alike.


	4. Cupcakes

"Sharing food with another human being is an intimate act that should not be indulged in lightly."  
_~M.F.K. Fisher_

* * *

For real this time, according to Miss Rigby, her life was getting better. She had come to a shocking revelation: She did _not need_ Leland or anyone else in her life! She was a confident, independent person after all. And she had nice freckles and a nice personality and she had friends and she had Rita and she was happy as she is, thank you very much!

Also, Rita had kittens. Two boys and three girls, all a beautiful white color. She would sit and stare at them all day, positively mesmerized by their little faces and adorable meows. She wanted to know if Dr. Lecter wanted one. There was this cute girl who had crossed eyes and she was more clever than the others and far more cuddly. Flossie called her Prudence, and thought that her and Hannibal would be the perfect match. The doctor was indeed more of a cat person than a dog one, but he ended up declining the offer. Kittens were very high-maintenance and he knew he would not have the time to properly love it. All living things needed to know they were loved and he would not be able to give that to Prudence.

For her very last session, Flossie was happy to present Dr. Lecter with a platter of cupcakes. They were vanilla and the icing on top was pink. Each one was meticulously decorated with a smiley face, and the one on the very top read _THANK YOU_ in bright, neon green lettering. Hannibal had to be honest; he was not at all excepting something so...simple to come from Flossie for their final session. But the way she smiled up at him with that toothy grin of hers and the way her eyes lit up when he looked at what she held in her hands told him that was the most important thing she had brought to him yet.

This time he decided to share them with her, asking her to stay after their final talk and before what he expected to be an emotional, heart-felt, and maybe a little melodramatic farewell. The cupcakes were like eating a fluffy, scrumptious cloud of happiness. Like narwhals dancing on rainbows, as Dr. Lecter assumed Miss Rigby would put it. He ate three while Flossie ate the remaining five.

Hannibal did not expect a mere _cupcake _to be so wonderful. It was a _cupcake_. Cupcakes were nothing exceedingly important in the grand scheme of things. Hannibal Lecter did not eat cupcakes, he ate _crème brulee_ and fancy things of the like that ordinary people such as Florence Rigby could not pronounce. Something she always said though, was that she made food with love. Perhaps this so-called _love _was what Hannibal was tasting, in the way he tasted sadness in Flossie's chocolate pudding. Love for her new-found kitten friends, love for Micecraft, love for Rita, love for food and love for life in general.

Flossie hugged Hannibal on her way out. She stood on her tip-toes and reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck. Dr. Lecter instantly tensed up, unaccustomed to such human contact. He smelt the cupcakes on her breath and the strawberry scent of her hair. Soon enough he relaxed and embraced her as well, gently placing his arms around her shoulders. She said, "You've been my best doctor."

Hannibal then decided that for dinner that night, he was going to make a grilled cheese sandwich, with some chocolate pudding for dessert.


End file.
